Oregon English Will Be The Official Language in Oregon (2016)
| Oregon English Will Be The Official Language in Oregon | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Election date November 8, 2016 | |
| Topic Immigration | |
| Status Not on the ballot | |
| Type State statute | Origin Citizens |
The English Will Be The Official Language in Oregon (Initiative Petition 2016-040) was not on the ballot in Oregon as an initiated state statute on November 8, 2016.”[1]
The measure would have declared English as Oregon’s official language and required official government actions and positions to be communicated in English, regardless of the affected person’s English proficiency. It would have limited laws that allow or require documents or services in languages other than English, with specific exceptions. Additionally, the measure would have provided that a person may not be denied benefits, including employment, because they can only speak English. A person would have been permitted to file a lawsuit and receive payment for costs and attorney fees if the initiative was violated.[2]
The measure would have allowed exceptions to the regulations in special cases including:[2]
- Teaching English
- Protecting public safety
- Promoting tourism
- Complying with federal laws
Text of measure
Ballot title
The official ballot title was:[3]
| “ | Result of "Yes" Vote: "Yes" vote changes/eliminates state/”subdivision” (undefined) requirements regarding using/requiring English or other languages, with specified exceptions; authorizes lawsuits, attorney fees to prevailing plaintiffs. Result of "No" Vote: "No" vote retains existing requirements for officials, government/private entities regarding using/requiring English, other languages. Employee proficiency in other languages required in some circumstances. |
” |
Ballot measure summary
The ballot summary was as follows:[3]
| “ | ” |
Full text
Read the full text of the measure here.
Background
Oregon residents have attempted to pass similar measures that require English over the years.
In 2008, ballot initiative activist Bill Sizemore introduced Oregon's Measure 58 as an initiated state statute. The measure required "English immersion" in Oregon's public schools. Teachers would have been prohibited from teaching public school students in languages other than English for more than two years. The full text of the measure is available here.
While supporters felt the measure would have improved the education of Oregon's immigrant children through "specialized, intensive English instruction," opponents argued it was too expensive and a "one-size-fits-all" mandate that did not account students' different abilities to learn academic English. The measure was defeated on the ballot by about 56 percent of the vote.
Three state lawmakers, Mike Nearman, Kim Thatcher, and Sal Esquivel, filed a similar petition on March 25, 2015. The complete measure read:
| “ | (1) English is the official language of the State of Oregon.
(2) An agency of state government, as defined in ORS 174.111, is not required to provide services or information in a language other than English, except as required by state or federal law. (3) This law does not prevent an agency of state government from providing services or information in a language other than English to individuals with limited English proficiency.[4] |
” |
The same three lawmakers introduced the measure of this measure, the Oregon English Will Be The Official Language in Oregon, on April 2, 2015, then withdrew the first initiative on June 18, 2015.
Support
Nearman, Esquivel, and Thatcher filed the petition and Oregonians for Immigration Reform, or OFIR, lead efforts to support the measure.
Arguments in favor
On the conservative political blog Oregon Catalyst, Nearman wrote:[5]
| “ | There are 138 languages spoken in Oregon and if you want to be successful – however you define successful for yourself – you should probably learn to speak English. Furthermore, it’s expensive and inefficient for the state to have to operate in multiple languages. So, let’s get out the clipboards, start collecting signatures and have a vote on it.[4] | ” |
Robert Vandervoort, executive director of English language advocacy group ProEnglish, said,[6]
| “ | Making English the official language of Oregon will help the taxpayer and promote assimilation.[4] | ” |
Opposition
There was no organized campaign against the petition. However, the Rural Organizing Project, a group that aims to advance democracy in Rural Oregon, spoke out in opposition to the measure.[7]
Arguments against
The Rural Organizing Project said,[7]
| “ | Efforts to designate English as the official language have long been part of the organized anti-immigrant movement’s strategy. The U.S. remains an English-majority country, and English-speakers in the U.S. are not in danger of losing access to government services or benefits based on language skills. So why is the anti-immigrant movement introducing “English as the official language” initiatives? Because these initiatives incite fear of immigrants and generate popular support for broader measures to exclude immigrants. They can also restrict non-English speakers’ access to government services, and even prevent government agencies from reaching out to non-English speaking communities.[4] | ” |
Path to the ballot
Nearman, Esquivel, and Thatcher filed the petition on April 2, 2015. The Oregon secretary of state verified the sponsor signatures on June 15, 2015 and confirmed the petition had 1,186 signatures.[1][8]
The secretary of state issued a petition title on July 23, 2015 that read: "Requires government actions/communications in English (with specified exceptions), limits laws allowing non-English documents/services." After the title was challenged by the American Civil Liberties Union, or ACLU, and other groups, and the attorney general's office rewrote it to read: "Changes state/subdivision (undefined) laws regarding English/other-language use and requirements; exceptions; authorizes lawsuits."[1][8]
Advocacy group Oregonians for Immigration Reform, or OFIR, was dissatisfied with the attorney general's office title. OFIR President Cynthia Kendoll claimed Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum was sabotaging the petition and interfering with the democratic process. She said,"The Attorney General is trying to confuse voters. The intent of the ballot title is to give voters an idea of what the initiative is about. This one fails miserably." Jim Ludwick, another OFIR spokesman, called the language "gobbledygook." The measured was appealed to the Oregon Supreme Court on August 7, 2015.[1][8]
ACLU of Oregon Executive Director David Rogers supported the attorney general's office and filed a friend of the court brief with the state Supreme Court. He stated, "If OFIR finds the revised title confusing it's because the measure is confusing and poorly written. Its ambiguity is incredible. If this measure passes, the chances of unintended consequence is extremely high."[8]
Initiative supporters were required to collect at least 88,184 signatures and submit them to the secretary of state by early July 2016 to qualify for the November 2016 ballot.[1]
Related measures
- Alaska English as Official Language, Measure 6 (1998)
- Arizona English Official Language Amendment, Proposition 106 (1988)
- California Proposition 63, English is the Official Language Amendment (1986)
- Colorado English as Official State Language, Initiative 1 (1988)
- Florida English Official Language, Amendment 11 (1988)
- Missouri English Official Language, Amendment 1 (2008)
- Nebraska English as Official Language, Amendment 3 (September 1920)
- Oklahoma English as the Unifying Language, State Question 751 (2010)
- Texas English Language Amendment (2011)
- Utah English as Official Language, Initiative A (2000)
State profile
| Demographic data for Oregon | ||
|---|---|---|
| Oregon | U.S. | |
| Total population: | 4,024,634 | 316,515,021 |
| Land area (sq mi): | 95,988 | 3,531,905 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White: | 85.1% | 73.6% |
| Black/African American: | 1.8% | 12.6% |
| Asian: | 4% | 5.1% |
| Native American: | 1.2% | 0.8% |
| Pacific Islander: | 0.4% | 0.2% |
| Two or more: | 4.1% | 3% |
| Hispanic/Latino: | 12.3% | 17.1% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate: | 89.8% | 86.7% |
| College graduation rate: | 30.8% | 29.8% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income: | $51,243 | $53,889 |
| Persons below poverty level: | 18.4% | 11.3% |
| Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Oregon. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. | ||
Presidential voting pattern
- See also: Presidential voting trends in Oregon
Oregon voted for the Democratic candidate in all seven presidential elections between 2000 and 2024.
Pivot Counties (2016)
Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, two are located in Oregon, accounting for 0.97 percent of the total pivot counties.[9]
Pivot Counties (2020)
In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. Oregon had two Retained Pivot Counties, 1.10 of all Retained Pivot Counties.
More Oregon coverage on Ballotpedia
- Elections in Oregon
- United States congressional delegations from Oregon
- Public policy in Oregon
- Endorsers in Oregon
- Oregon fact checks
- More...
See also
External links
- Oregonians For Immigration Reform
- Oregonians For Immigration Reform Facebook Page
- Rural Organizing Project
- ProEnglish
- ACLU of Oregon
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Oregon Secretary of State, "Detailed Information For : 40/2016," accessed October 1, 2015
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 OregonVotes.org, “Initiative Petition,” accessed October 1, 2015
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedtext - ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Oregon Catalyst, “Should English be official language of Oregon?”, August 8, 2015
- ↑ Oregonians For Immigration Reform, “TAKE ACTION! Tell Your State Representative to Support Official English for Oregon”, March 17, 2015
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Rural Organizing Project, “Racism is NOT welcome in Oregon,” June 23, 2015
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 Statesman Journal, “Petition title irks immigration reform group,” September 16, 2015
- ↑ The raw data for this study was provided by Dave Leip of Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections.
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